Palestinians ease stance, willing to resume talk

Official: Israeli peace talks best option right now

Jun. 24, 2011 12:00 AMAssociated Press

RAMALLAH, West Bank - The Palestinians are ready to ease their demand for a freeze on Israeli settlement construction to get peace talks back on track, a top official told the Associated Press Thursday.

The softened position reflects the Palestinians' growing realization that their alternative strategies to talks - reconciling with the Hamas militant group and seeking unilateral recognition at the United Nations - are both in trouble.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing a sensitive diplomatic proposal, said the Palestinians will ease the demand for a full construction freeze and resume peace talks if Israel accepts President Barack Obama's proposal to base negotiations on a broad Israeli withdrawal from lands captured in the 1967 Mideast war.

The issue is at the heart of the current impasse. The latest round of talks was launched last September at the White House after a two-year breakdown, only to collapse three weeks later with the expiration of an Israeli slowdown on settlement construction.